Shane Moylan successfully defended his Ph.D. thesis on July 2, 2026, titled "Study of Two Key Resonances of ²⁰Ne(α,γ)²⁴Mg in Inverse Kinematics using the St. George Recoil Mass Separator" advised by Prof. Manoel Couder. Shane’s thesis reports on the study of the ²⁰Ne(α,γ)²⁴Mg reaction, a crucial component in the neon-burning phase of stellar evolution for massive stars. Working at the Nuclear Science Laboratory, he implemented upgrades to the St. George recoil mass separator and HIPPO gas-jet target to increase the sensitivity of the system. These advancements allowed him to measure two resonance strengths at 1640 keV and 2220 keV, providing new resonance strength data and uncovering key insights into the limitations of current charge state distribution models used to extract the data.

Research conducted by Research Associate Professor Dr. Khachatur Manukyan and his co-authors has been featured in The Conversation and selected as a lead story in the publication’s science newsletter. As the United States approaches the 250th anniversary of its founding, the article highlights how advanced materials characterization techniques were used to analyze colonial paper currency, revealing the innovative anti-counterfeiting methods and materials employed by Benjamin Franklin.

The research demonstrates how modern scientific tools can uncover new insights into the technologies that helped establish trust in early American currency and support the growth of the colonial economy. It also showcases the interdisciplinary research capabilities of the Nuclear Science Laboratory, where expertise in materials science, history, and analytical techniques converges to address questions of historical and scientific significance.

John McDonaugh successfully defended his Ph.D. thesis on March 31, 2026 titled “Constraining the 120Te(γ,n)/(γ,α) branching point for the γ-process nucleosynthesis” advised by Prof. Anna Simon-Robertson.

John’s thesis reports on the measurement of seven proton- and alpha-capture reactions on tin and palladium isotopes to constrain Hauser-Feshbach models in the mass region around A=120. The primary goal of this work is to constrain the branching temperature for the ¹²⁰Te isotope within the γ-process nucleosynthesis path. To achieve this, John utilized the FN accelerator alongside HECTOR, a gamma-ray summing detector. The reaction rates calculated in this study improve our understanding of nucleosynthesis flow and will inform future network calculations of the γ-process.

Miriam Matney successfully defended her Ph.D. thesis on March 16, 2026 titled “The Neutron Irradiation Station and measurements of the ⁶⁸Zn neutron capture cross sections” advised by Prof. Anna Simon-Robertson.

Miriam’s thesis focused on the neutron capture reaction on ⁶⁸Zn for the s-process nucleosynthesis. The reaction is key to determine the flow of the s-process nucleosynthesis and defines the abundance of several isotopes in the A=70-90 mass region. To measure this reaction across a wide range of neutron energies, she utilized the DANCE array at Los Alamos National Laboratory. Subsequently, Miriam used this same reaction to commission the Neutron Irradiation Station at the NSL, marking the first neutron-capture measurement ever performed using this facility.

Noah Cabanas is the recipient of the 2026 Cornelius P. Browne Memorial Award in Nuclear Physics. He is recognized for his contributions to the development of novel production mechanisms for actinide thin films along with Prof. Ani Aprahamian and Dr. Khachatur Manukyan, as well as for his work using accelerated beams to study their properties. Noah has already published five publications, including two as first author, and has an additional four manuscripts currently in preparation or under review.

Cornelius P. Browne served as the director for the Nuclear Structure Lab for nearly thirty years. Through his hard work and dedication he steered the lab through the most successful period in its history. In honor of Dr. Browne, this award is presented annually to an outstanding Nuclear Physics graduate student who has exemplified Professor Browne’s work ethic.

John McDonaugh is the recipient of the 2026 Larry O. Lamm Memorial Award in Nuclear Physics. The award recognizes John’s work and dedication to the Nuclear Science Laboratory and his dedication to the Laboratory Safety Committee. He has been a great advocate for lab safety among the graduate students, and he has served on the Safety Committee for many years. John has also enthusiastically supported the research program of the NSL and his fellow students.

Dr. Lamm was a 1989 PhD graduate from our program and in 1994 joined the nuclear group as a Research Professor. His work in the Nuclear Science Laboratory as technical director was instrumental in expanding the laboratory to its current size, and striving to reach new heights in nuclear astrophysics.

At the inaugural Notre Dame Postdoc Spotlight, held on November 6, 2025, Dr. Khushi Bhatt was awarded the Community Choice Award for Excellence in Research Communication in the final round, recognizing her outstanding ability to communicate complex research in an engaging and accessible way. The event, organized by the Graduate School, University of Notre Dame, brought together postdoctoral scholars from across disciplines to showcase their work to the wider Notre Dame community.

Dr. Bhatt’s journey to this honor began in early October, when she competed in the College of Science Postdoc Lightning Talk Competition. There, she earned second place for her three-minute presentation titled “Recreating the stars in the lab”, in which she described how her work uses particle accelerators to simulate the nuclear reactions that occur in stellar explosions — helping to unravel how elements like niobium form in the cosmos.

Advancing to the university-wide Postdoc Spotlight final, Dr. Bhatt’s presentation again resonated with attendees. Her clarity, enthusiasm, and ability to connect fundamental nuclear astrophysics to big-picture questions about the origins of elements earned her the community’s favor. Event organizers noted that the presentations were “nothing short of jaw-dropping.”

Bhatt is a Provost’s Postdoctoral Society of Science Fellow and holds a postdoctoral research associate appointment in the research group of Prof. Anna Simon-Robertson in the Department of Physics & Astronomy at Notre Dame. Her win underscores not just her scientific prowess, but also her growing reputation as a skilled science communicator — a role that bridges her deep expertise in nuclear astrophysics with the public’s wonder about the cosmos.

Congratulations to Dr. Bhatt on this remarkable achievement — and thanks to her for helping make nuclear-astrophysics accessible, inspiring, and compelling to the Notre Dame community and beyond.

NSL graduate student Fabio Rivero served as director for the inaugural run of the University of Notre Dame chapter of PING (Physicists Inspiring the Next Generation) in summer 2025. Five high school students from the greater South Bend area participated in a two-week summer program designed to introduce them to what physics research is and how it is carried out in practice.

During the first week, students explored foundational physics concepts and completed a Python coding bootcamp. In the second week, they applied their new skills by working on week-long modern physics projects. These hands-on projects included analyzing real data from the Hubble Space Telescope, conducting experiments in a nuclear science laboratory setting, and more.

The program provided an exciting opportunity to share our passion for physics with the next generation of scientists, and we look forward to welcoming a new cohort of students in Summer 2026!

Profs. James deBoer, Wanpeng Tan, and Michael Wiescher were part of an international team of researchers who recently published a review article in the European Journal of Physics on the physics of carbon–carbon fusion reactions during late stellar burning. The C+C fusion reaction is believed to play a key role in numerous stellar burning environments and has long been considered the most likely ignition mechanism for Type Ia thermonuclear supernovae. Despite its importance, the physics governing low-energy carbon fusion remains poorly understood. Although significant experimental and theoretical efforts have been made to extend direct reaction studies into the low-energy regime relevant to stellar environments, this region remains largely unexplored, and the full astrophysical impact of the reaction is still uncertain. The review summarizes the current status of experimental and theoretical work in the field, much of which has been driven by research conducted at the Notre Dame Nuclear Science Laboratory with funding support from the National Science Foundation.

The review article has been published online and is available at: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1140/epja/s10050-025-01759-3.

Thomas Bailey successfully defended his Ph.D. thesis on October 21, 2025 entitled “Developing reference standards for ²³⁶U Accelerator Mass Spectrometry capabilities at the University of Notre Dame” advised by Prof. Philippe Collon.

The natural abundance of ²³⁶U in nature varies over a few orders of magnitude between different mine locations and any individual location’s abundance of ²³⁶U has long been considered a unique “fingerprint”-like signature. Thomas’ thesis work to develop a series of ²³⁶U standards will for the very first time ever allow Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) measurements of this actinide over the overall full range of its natural abundances with appropriate standards. In collaboration with the IAEA these standards will be provided to other laboratories around the world. This work has been the subject of a number of publication and a final publication is being finalized. Under Thomas’ leadership, many new improvements in actinide AMS measurements were made at the NSL and his guidance and mentoring of his fellow group members has allowed them to flourish. Thomas has also participated in a number of AMS measurements at Argonne National Laboratory dedicated to National Ignition Facility (NIF) Physics.

On Thursday, October 9th, the fourth College of Science Postdoc Lightning Talk Competition was held in Jordan Hall of Science. These 3-minute presentations highlight exciting scientific research being conducted by postdoctoral scholars in the college. Not only do these talks provide an opportunity for postdocs to develop presentation and research communication skills, but monetary prizes for the top three presentations are also on the line.

There were 13 participants in the final round representing the Departments of Biological Sciences, Chemistry and Biochemistry, Mathematics, and Physics and Astronomy. Two postdocs from the Department of Physics and Astronomy participated: Dr. Khushi Bhatt and Dr. Joseph Derkin.

Dr. Bhatt won the second position. Through her talk “Recreating the stars in the lab”, she described how she recreates the nuclear reactions that happen inside stars in the lab using particle accelerators to understand how elements like niobium are formed in stellar explosions. Dr. Bhatt is a Provost’s Society of Science Fellow and works in the research group of Prof. Anna Simon-Robertson. Dr. Derkin’s talk titled, “The Neutron Marathon” described his research on reaction-based neutron sources for astrophysical applications. He works under the guidance of Prof. Michael Wiescher.

Top three contenders of this event will advance to the university-wide competition and will face off the winners from Colleges of Engineering, and Arts & Letters on November 6th.

Wiescher, a professor in the University of Notre Dame Department of Physics and Astronomy, and collaborators proposed a new concept for predicting the emergence of low-energy resonances because of the effects of quantum mechanics. Their work, Quantum physics of stars appeared in Reviews of Modern Physics. Research in this area may someday be applied to the defense industry and to the development of fusion reactors, alternative power sources that could potentially provide a safe, sustainable resource for producing electricity later this century.

Using theoretical models, researchers predicted the emergence of strong resonances at very low energies. In unusual circumstances, particles can briefly stick together, even if they normally would not. This happens when two different quantum states interact or “couple,” causing a temporary resonance, which is similar to tuning two radios to the same frequency. Scientists can predict when this will happen by understanding how these quantum states influence each other.

Fusion, a process where two atomic nuclei combine to form a heavier nucleus and release excess energy, powers our Sun and all stars. Low-mass stars burn fuel slower and live for billions of years, while high-mass stars burn through their fuel much faster. With few significant measurements of these reactions, it has been difficult to learn exactly how the process works, Wiescher said.

In his paper Wiescher collaborated with several theorists and discussed the quantum effects that may impact reactions. Though experimental advances using deep underground accelerators have improved the understanding of nuclear reactions at low energies, nuclear reactions at stellar burning conditions rely on theoretical extrapolations, which are now considerably improved through the understanding and implementation of the quantum effects in the calculations.

Many examples in the paper pertain to stable beams. However, nuclear reactions far from stability, such as the proton and neutron capture reaction on unstable particles investigated at Michigan State’s Facility for Rare Isoptope Beams are important, Wiescher said. Researchers also reviewed advanced theoretical techniques to extrapolate reaction cross sections into new-threshold regions for nuclei far-off stability.

Scientists need to understand the quantum threshold effects discussed in the review paper in order to reliably model nuclear reaction processes, Wiescher said. This includes not only models for stars but also for low-temperature plasma environments such as controlled magnetic or inertial confinement fusion systems, which operate in similar temperatures. Wiescher described these as similar to “suns for a mere nanosecond.”

In addition to researchers at Notre Dame, collaborators included researchers from East Texas A&M University, Commerce, Texas; Grand Accélérateur National d’Ions Louds, Caen Cedex, France; GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung, Darmstadt, Germany; Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan; Ohio University, Athens, Ohio; Polish Academy of Sciences, Kraków, Poland; TRIUMF, Vancouver, Canada; Universidade de São Paulo, Brazil; Università degli Studi di Enna “Kore,” Enna, Italy; and University of Surrey, Guildford, United Kingdom.

The work was supported in part by funding from the National Science Foundation and the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science Office of Nuclear Physics.

Originally published by Deanna Csomo Ferrell at science.nd.edu on August 11, 2025.

CASPAR is a low-energy particle accelerator that is helping scientists at SURF understand how stars forge matter.

The Thomas P. Madden Award honors a faculty member who has demonstrated exceptional leadership in the teaching of first-year students. Described by students as an “exceptional educator” who “champions both her subject and her students,” Rebecca Surman teaches students the rigors of physics while inspiring them to consider themselves potential scientists. As the primary instructor for the yearlong introductory Physics A and B sequence, Professor Surman’s lectures are engaging and thoughtfully designed to help first-year students build a strong foundation in physics. She encourages active participation, fostering a classroom environment where students are comfortable asking questions. Students have highlighted her remarkable ability to break down complex topics into understandable components in ways that enhanced their ability to solve problems. Their admiration, which has also been noted by peers and senior faculty, reflects her demonstrated investment in students’ well-being and future success—including connecting them to research opportunities at prestigious labs such as Argonne National Laboratory. As one student summarized her impact, she “has encouraged me to make the most of my educational opportunity of being at Notre Dame and challenge myself by taking her class.”

Past recipients of the Thomas P. Madden Award from the Department of Physics and Astronomy include Randy Ruchti (Emeritus), Prof. Chris Kolda, and Prof. Mike Hildreth (Dean of the Graduate School).

The Notre Dame Nuclear Science Laboratory (NSL) has long been known for being a world leader in nuclear astrophysics research. As evidence, a recent analysis of publications in nuclear astrophysics shows that Notre Dame affiliated researchers have published more papers in the field during the last decade than any other institution world-wide. The list of frequent publishers is led by Friemann Professor of Physics Michael Wiescher with 270 nuclear astrophysics publications during the last decade. Prof. Wiescher was the long-time director of the NSL and the founder of the Joint Institute for Nuclear Astrophysics (JINA).

The NSL is the research base for sixteen Notre Dame faculty members who have recently published nuclear astrophysics research, and NSL researchers operate three accelerators locally and fourth a mile underground in South Dakota, which when combined with unique experimental equipment enables a broad range of nuclear astrophysics studies.

Scott Carmichael successfully defended his Ph.D. thesis on April 2, 2025 entitled "An experimentally constrained reaction rate for ⁵⁷Ni(p,γ)⁵⁸Cu" advised by Prof. Dan Bardayan. Scott's thesis involved three distinct but highly correlated projects. The primary goal was to constrain the amount of observable ⁴⁴Ti produced in supernovae by understanding the ⁵⁷Ni(p,γ)⁵⁸Cu reaction rate that had never previously been experimentally constrained. Scott proposed a PAC-accepted experiment at Argonne using a unique detector combination including the highly-demanded GRETINA and ORRUBA detector arrays. This first high-resolution study of ⁵⁸Cu resulted in a significantly improved understanding of ⁵⁸Cu levels. Scott then led the installation and commissioning of the multi-million dollar Enge spectrometer at the NSL, which resulted in further constraints on the ⁵⁷Ni(p,γ)⁵⁸Cu reaction. Finally Scott worked closely with Prof. Rebecca Surman on nucleosynthesis calculations showing the dramatic reduction in uncertainties related to ⁴⁴Ti nucleosynthesis as a result of his work. The combination of these unique and world-leading approaches impacting our understanding of ⁴⁴Ti production is of wide interest, and Scott will submit the results to Physical Review Letters.

Sam Porter is the recipient of the 2025 Cornelius P. Browne Memorial Award in Nuclear Physics. Sam is recognized for his work on the first beta-neutrino angular correlation measurement using St. Benedict. He has published several papers as first author and successfully organized the 2024 CeNAM Frontiers meeting as the co-chair. Sam is also an active member of the NSL outreach committee.

Cornelius P. Browne served as the director for the Nuclear Structure Lab for nearly thirty years. Through his hard work and dedication he steered the lab through the most successful period in its history. In honor of Dr. Browne, this award is presented annually to an outstanding Nuclear Physics graduate student who has exemplified Professor Browne’s work ethic.

Miriam Matney is the recipient of the 2025 Larry O. Lamm Memorial Award in Nuclear Physics. The award recognizes Miriam’s work and dedication to the Nuclear Science Laboratory, with her involvement in the assembling and commissioning of the Neutron Irradiation Station and her commissiong paper which has recently been published in Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A. In addition, she has become an essential 5U accelerator operator facilitating numerous experiments with internal and external collaborators.

Dr. Lamm was a 1989 PhD graduate from our program and in 1994 joined the nuclear group as a Research Professor. His work in the Nuclear Science Laboratory as technical director was instrumental in expanding the laboratory to its current size, and striving to reach new heights in nuclear astrophysics.